GOLOVKIN SET FOR TOUGHEST TEST WHILE CONLAN PREPARES FOR ST PATRICK’S DAY DEBUT LIVE ON BOXNATION
LONDON (March 17, 2017) – Pound-for-pound ace Gennady Golovkin knows he will be in his toughest fight to date when he takes on knockout king Danny Jacobs on Saturday night.
The Kazakh warrior faces cancer survivor and the hard-hitting Jacobs, who has stopped 29 of his 32 opponents, exclusively live on BoxNation this weekend from the iconic Madison Square Garden.
Despite being one of the world’s most formidable punchers and boxers around, with a record of 36 wins unbeaten, with 33 of those by knockout, 34-year-old WBC, WBA and IBF middleweight world champion Golovkin is refusing to overlook Jacobs.
“He is a very good fighter and maybe has a little bit more power than me. He has big power and he is a very good boxer,” said Golovkin.
“Of course I feel that I have power and it is very important to me and I can feel the power in my punches. I get that from hard work and practice.
”Sometimes though it is not just power. It has a lot to do with timing and distance. It is not all in the punch.
“This is my first fight of the year and he is a tough guy and a great fighter and I am very excited for this fight and this year.
“He is one of the most dangerous for me. He is very good in the ring. He is a good boxer with good technique. I respect him too, he is a very good man,” he said.
Golovkin’s trainer Abel Sanchez is also well aware that his man cannot go into the fight underestimating 30-year-old Jacobs, who has the ability to put any opponent in his weight class to sleep.
He is of the belief that this fight is more of a threat to the unified champion than a showdown with Mexican star Canelo Alvarez.
“I think that [he is a bigger threat than Canelo] he has got one punch power. There is the chance he will knock you out – he is a big dude,” said Sanchez.
“Canelo is more of a combination puncher but they are both very good fighters. Both Canelo and Jacobs have fights coming up and Canelo has the bigger guy on May 6 and we will be able to tell then who is the bigger and stronger guy,” he said.
Also tonight, exclusively live on BoxNation, will be the debut of Irish Olympic sensation Michael Conlan who starts his professional career at the ‘Mecca of Boxing’ – Madison Square Garden on St Patrick’s Day against Tim Ibarra.
Conlan will be walked to the ring by UFC superstar and fellow countryman Conor McGregor and is equally ambitious as the brash Dubliner as he looks to go down as the best Irish fighter of all time.
“My goal is to be the best Irish fighter of all time. Tim [Ibarra] and I both have to put bread on the table and we’ll be working hard to do that Friday night. I am going to have to knock him out,” said Conlan.
“Over 2,000 fans are flying in from Ireland to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and my pro debut. I never dreamed this would be happening to me, that it was even possible – headlining in my pro debut at the Mecca of Boxing.
“I am taking this whole experience in. I revel in it. It’s going to be electric when Conor McGregor carry’s the tricolor [flag] and walks me into the ring,” he said.
BoxNation will be the only place to watch all this action live this weekend with Conlan headlining a fantastic fight card tonight, before Golovkin takes on Jacobs on Saturday night, with the phenomenal Roman ‘Chocolatito’ Gonzalez part of a stacked bill.
Golovkin v Jacobs & Conlan v Ibarra are exclusively live on BoxNation. Buy now at boxnation.com.
